In the News

February 18, 2015 | The final figures are in: The 2014 election was the most expensive midterm election in history, costing a grand total of $3.77 billion. But for the first time since 1990, fewer Americans donated money in this midterm election than the one before. Simply put, more money went into the system, but fewer people provided it.…

November 10, 2014 | It may be too early to call 2014 the year that K Street’s long decline ended, but the most recent round of reports suggest at least a leveling off. Third quarter 2014 lobbying expenditures totaled $771.9 million, which is only a bit lower than outlays during the same period in previous years. And spending for the…

November 5, 2014 | Republicans made the most of their fundraising advantage and routed Democrats in Tuesday’s midterms, but they seized the majority in the Senate and built their lead in the House even as fewer donors participated in the process and more of the dollars came from secret sources. Democrats weren’t swamped when it came to the money…

August 29, 2013 | President Obama might hope that his new education initiative doesn't rile too many in academia: By reputation, college professors and staff members are solid Democrats, and a deeper look at their campaign contributions by the Center for Responsive Politics mostly backs that up -- though certain types of schools tend to skew more left than others.

May 2, 2012 | Talking heads and culture warriors have been working overtime in 2012 on both sides of the abortion, birth control, religious freedom and gun rights issues. But for all the talk about how much -- or how little -- say the government should have on key social issues, the battles haven't spilled onto K Street. According to OpenSecrets.org data, lobbying on ideological issues was down nearly across the board for the first three months of 2012.

March 20, 2012 | Blue Dog Democrats are an endangered species on Capitol Hill, but their fundraising suggests they may be clawing their way back with a little help from Democratic leadership PACs, among others.

July 22, 2011 | One-third of the money President Barack Obama's elite fund-raising corps has raised on behalf of his re-election has come from the financial sector, according to a new Center for Responsive Politics analysis. Individuals who work in the finance, insurance and real estate sector are responsible for raising at least $11.3 million for Obama's campaign and the Democratic National Committee, according to the Center's research.

January 27, 2011 | Liberal Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio), who recently filed a $150,000 lawsuit after biting into an olive pit and sustaining dental damages, has found common cause with tort attorneys before. Since the 1996 election cycle -- when he was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives -- Kucinich has collected $57,500 from the political action committee of the American Association for Justice.

November 22, 2010 | The Blue Dogs have elevated Reps. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.), John Barrow (D-Ga.) and Mike Ross (D-Ark.) as their new leaders. Which donors and special interests have these men relied upon to fill their war chests?

November 10, 2010 | Imagine that every member of Congress represents the industry or special interests that have contributed the most to his or her campaign coffers. Which industries and special interests, then, lost or won seats in Congress during the 2010 midterm election?

May 17, 2010 | Despite long odds, insurgent candidates have challenged senators in Arkansas and Pennsylvania, and now these two sitting Democratic senators risk being ousted Tuesday by disgruntled voters. Challenges in each state have gained steam thanks to enthusiasm among the Democratic base, with some liberal activists and unions defying the Democratic Party establishment and bucking even the political operation of the White House.

March 31, 2010 | In the hotly contested special election that sent Republican Scott Brown to the U.S. Senate, Brown and his opponent, Democrat Martha Coakley, squeezed their fund-raising efforts into a rapid scramble for money that lasted just weeks, not months.

August 20, 2009 | It's a glorious time to be a Democrat if you're hoping for some serious advocacy action from the nation's monied liberal establishments. Through the first half of 2009, left-leaning political action committees have obliterated their right-leaning competition in spending, a Center for Responsive Politics analysis of federal campaign finance data indicates.

August 19, 2009 | Political action committees and individuals associated with health industries, each of which are intimately involved in the nation's ongoing health care reform debate, are donating more to federal candidates during the second quarter of 2009 than the first quarter, according to a Center for Responsive Politics analysis.

September 29, 2008 | Barack Obama defended his decision not to accept public financing by arguing that running a campaign for the White House based on small contributions accomplishes what the public financing system aims to do but falls short of doing: curb the influence of outside interest groups. In many congressional races, the issue of who's backing the candidate--wealthy donors or everyone else--is finding its way into debates over the best way to fix the economy and whether campaign contributions and lobbying by the financial sector had anything to do with today's economic crisis. Capital Eye takes a closer look at some of these races.

September 25, 2008 | Private interests and members of the public aren't the only ones betting their money on the congressional candidates they hope will win (or retain) congressional seats. Lawmakers in both parties have a vested interest in seeing their own candidates succeed this November, with Democrats wanting to strengthen their majority and Republicans hoping to minimize their losses. Here we look at some of the candidates getting the largest cash infusions from their own parties, indicating a close race.

November 15, 2007 | Top industries and interest groups have increased their giving over 2004 by 46 percent, Center finds. As money shifts to Democrats, giving from Republican strongholds is mostly flat.

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